Health Tip of the Month
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Some foods can lower cholesterol
In May, the Food and Drug Administration admonished General Mills for claiming that Cheerios lower cholesterol.
The cereal box states "Cheerios is...clinically proven to lower cholesterol...when taken as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol."
So, is it the diet or the Cheerios? Cheerios are good for you, but it's more about overall diet.
Kathleen Wessling, MD, of the Colchester Backus Health Center, said there are foods that research shows lower cholesterol:
Ten grams of soluble fiber a day lowers both total cholesterol and LDL ("bad" cholesterol). Examples are oatmeal, oat bran, apples, pears, prunes and psyllium. There are 6 grams of soluble fiber in 1½ cups of cooked oatmeal, 6 grams in a 3-inch apple, 5 grams in a cup of chopped orange, and 4 grams in a 3-inch pear.
Walnuts and several other nuts can lower total cholesterol and have a healthy effect on elasticity of blood vessels - even in small quantities. But they are high in calories, so stick to just a handful (1.5 ounces) a day.
Some fish lower cholesterol and have other heart healthy effects when you eat at least two servings per week. Baking or grilling preserves these benefits, which come from mackerel, salmon, lake trout, herring, sardines, and albacore tuna. For those who don't enjoy fish, flax seed and canola oil are sources of omega-3 fatty acids.
Two tablespoons of olive oil per day helps lower bad cholesterol. Evidence specifies that extra virgin olive accomplishes this but "light" olive oil is not as effective, having lost some of the benefit in the processing.
Foods fortified with plant sterols (2 grams or more per day) reduce LDL cholesterol. You can find them in yogurt, juices, spreads that are specially marked, Yoplait Healthy Heart yogurt and Benecol. Just be careful to see how many grams of plant sterol a serving provides.
